MASBATE CITY – Director General Jesus Verzosa, chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP) vowed Thursday to stop political killings in Masbate as he activated a 100-man team tasked to dismantle the 12 partisan armed groups (PAGs) in Masbate, a template that will be used in 14 other provinces listed as election hot spots across the country.

“The political contenders here are killing each other for the last 20 years, this must be stopped now,” said Verzosa.

Verzosa said he did not give a deadline to the team dubbed as Special Task Force (STF) Masbate but he stressed that the group was strictly ordered to ensure that those PAGs will not be able to sow troubles during the entire election period for this year.

“It is vital that we maintain a strong presence in the province of Masbate thru the Special Task Force to effectively carry out law enforcement and security operations during the election period, and, more importantly, to break the cycle of election violence, intimidation and political killings in the province,” said Verzosa.

The STF Masbate will be headed by Senior Superintendent Marcelo Garbo, the newly designated executive officer of the Directorate for Operations with the Masbate Provincial Director, Senior Supt. Ed Benigay as deputy commander.